Ghosting
by Reader4077
Summary: The Doctor sees Rose at the end of 'Partners in Crime' One-shot, VERY angsty.


_A/N_

_You might want to get some tissues… Short one piece. Hopefully it's different from other stories! Please leave me a review and let me know what you think! _

The Doctor waited impatiently for Donna to return. She was around the corner, phoning her mum to let her know where the car keys were. The Doctor was never any good at waiting or staying still for very long, and he fidgeted while he waited. He had moved all of Donna's luggage into the TARDIS, and while for a moment he had considered "forgetting" the hat box, he had eventually brought it all on board. After another minute of standing there, rocking back and forth with his hands shoved into his coat pockets, The Doctor decided that something had to be wrong for her to be taking this long, and walked back to the corner to investigate. He came around the corner, then froze. Standing there, across the road, was Donna talking to … a blonde girl who looked a lot like _her_.

"Rose?" The Doctor couldn't keep her name from his lips. The she turned around, and their eyes met. They both stood there, staring at each other. Then The Doctor regained control of his body and he pushed away from the wall and shoved his way through the crowd towards her.

"Rose!" He called her name again, this time loud enough to rise above the crowd. Donna heard his voice, and whirled around, her face a mask of confusion. Her eyes darted between the them, then her mouth opened in a silent "O." But Rose didn't move. She stood there, her heart breaking. Her time here was almost up. So when The Doctor finally reached her, she couldn't tell him all the things that she wanted to say. She couldn't speak at all actually. She was just a ghost in this world. An image, impressed upon it. Soon, her time here would be up, and she would fade. Forced back into Pete's World where she was trapped, but was trying so desperately to escape. The Doctor finally reached her, and stood there, staring at her in disbelief. He opened his mouth. There were so many things that he wanted to say. But Rose stopped him. She raised her hand, which was already beginning to fade and raised a finger to her lips. The Doctor gave a brief reminder of that adventure with the Isolus. Rose smiled briefly back at him, trying to hold back her tears.

"I will find you." She mouthed silently as she faded completely from this world. The Doctor watched her go, clinging to every second that he could see her. When he finally had to admit that she was gone, he turned and silently headed back towards the TARDIS. Donna followed after him and shut the doors behind her when she entered. The Doctor walked to the console and began fiddling with the controls. Donna came up behind him.

"Doctor?" She called his name softly. After a moment, he looked up at her. He looked so lost. So alone. So full of pain.

"Hey." Donna said, reaching over to place her hands on top of his. "I'm here for you." The Doctor just nodded, not really seeming to hear her. Donna tried again.

"That was Rose wasn't it?" She asked, knowing the answer full well. But she had to get him talking.

"Yeah." The Doctor nodded, emotion clouding his voice.

"The friend you lost." The Doctor nodded again.

"She's trapped in a parallel universe. And the walls are closed. Forever." He told her.

"Then….How…?"Donna trailed off, but The Doctor knew what she was asking.

"I don't know. Somehow, she was ghosting." Seeing Donna's blank look, he explained. "She was an image forced on this world. It takes enormous amounts of energy to do that, like from a supernova." The Doctor trailed off, and there was silence in the TARDIS.

"I'm sorry." Donna finally said.

"Yeah." The Doctor sighed, going back to fiddling with the controls.

"Are you alright?" Donna asked him, seeing his pain.

"I'm always alright." He told her. But they both knew that was a lie as he pressed the button that would send them into the Vortex. He was nowhere near alright.

_A/N_

_Hope you enjoyed! Please let me know! And for those who read 'Salvation' I am working on a sequel for season 5, but it might take me a while, but keep checking back! I'll update soon hopefully! _


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